Wednesday, July 28, 2010

We're back home after a long weekend in beautiful Seattle.Seattle was enjoying 4 of its 100 sunny days a year during our visit. We did lots of the tourist stuff from walking the old streets Underground to looking down at the city from the Space Needle. We also ate really well but, I'm not going to bore you with a play by play of every meal instead, I just want to highlight a few places that really stood out.

This was our first dinner in Seattle & it really set the bar high for the rest of the trip. The restaurant is that perfect blend of casual & fancy, one of those places you can feel comfortable dressed up or in a pair of jeans. The food was absolutely wonderful from start to finish & included a few free bites from the chef. But what really made the night was the great service. There is really a lot to be said for a server that knows about the food & how to let you enjoy the whole experience. We would highly recommend Zoë to anyone visiting Seattle.(1. Restaurant Zoë 2. Seared Sonoma Artisan Fois Gras 3. Hog Croustillant 4. Thundering Hooves Braised Beef)

We were lucky to find this coffee house/cafe right behind our hotel & ended up eating there twice. Our first day in Seattle we enjoyed sandwiches for lunch & on our last day we had breakfast (do not miss their breakfast sandwich on a homemade biscuit with egg, bacon, spinach, tomato, white cheddar & creme fresh). You can have a coffee drink there & they also serve beer & wine, plus you can buy a bottle of wine to take with you. If the weather is nice they have sidewalk & patio seating with a view of the Space Needle.

Saturday we wandered into a craft market in the Pioneer Square neighborhood & decided to have lunch at the various street food trucks that were there as well. Skillet really stood out with their airstream trailer & interesting menu. Apparently, we weren't the only ones who thought so as they minute they opened there was a huge line to order. We had the pork belly banh mi with a generous helping of hand-cut fries & a tasty blackberry lemonade. A perfect lunch at a shady table in the square. You can find out where the Skillet truck is on their website.

For a break from the crowds & crowds of people at Pike Place Market we headed upstairs to Matt's for lunch. Matt's uses goods from the market to create their dishes which makes for some interesting seasonal choices. The views on the market can't be beat either.